


disclose

by Kallos83



Series: Nimrods [1]
Category: The Ultimate Sidemen
Genre: Alcohol, Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, Alternate Universe - Gangsters, Alternate Universe - High School, Anal Sex, Blow Jobs, Bottom Simon, Fights, Fist Fights, Foreplay, Hand Jobs, M/M, Secret Relationship, Simon is a dickhead, Top JJ, Underage Sex, Underage Smoking, Violence, falling in love?, jj with a filter, slowburn, they're all lost
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-26
Updated: 2018-06-07
Packaged: 2018-09-20 02:12:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 12
Words: 8,262
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9470831
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kallos83/pseuds/Kallos83
Summary: A rough neighborhood.A hoodlum.A taste.Growing up in a rougher environment, JJ has learned to roll with the punches, quite literally.When Deji runs into trouble, the only person he can turn to appears to be a gangster who plays 'Simon Says' with his underlings.Except, things take weirder turn?





	1. introductions

"Ola-what?" Sneered Simon.

The cold concrete was cold on JJ's forehead and as he sunk deeper to his knees, he repeated, "my brother didn't do it. Just clear his name."

Deji was in deep shit.

Naturally, being his older brother, JJ knew to let him handle things himself so he'd learn how to sort shit out on his own in the future.

But.

This was much bigger than the both of them.

His little brother was on the verge of being expelled and having grown up in the town, he knew Simon was the only person who could change that. He was a year 13 who ran the gangs of the town and was easily a force to be reckoned with. From what he'd heard, Simon had so much influence that his wishes would most often than not turn into a reality.

Which is how JJ ended up crashing one of their gang meetings in the physical educational department's storage room.

"Have you brought any payment?" asked one of Simon's goons, stooping down to a squat, baseball bat slung over his shoulders.

JJ didn't dare lift his head off the floor, "no. But I'll do anything!" There was cackling that surrounded him from Simon's underlings.

There was cackling that surrounded him from Simon's underlings.

"This dude's gonna get fucked right in the ass," said one of them.

"Guess what we're having for dinner? Pussy!" Cracked another, high-fiving his friend.

Bearing in mind that this was all for his little brother, JJ resisted the urge to roll his eyes.

"Simon says, shut the fuck up," interrupted Simon, leaning back against the old gym mattresses.

A stunning silence overcame the room.

"Tell me what you want," Simon sighed exasperatedly.

"My brother, Deji was accused of raping this girl from Chelten out of nowhere. I know he was framed and everyone told me you're the only one who can change that around here." JJ explained.

Simon's piercing blue eyes barely grazed JJ's form on the floor, before he pointed at a guy with a loosened tie, "beat this cunt up."

The pit of his stomach collapsed and JJ felt sick. He flinched at the command and clenched his fist, trying to get ahold of his blurring vision.

All he kept his focus on was the loose dirt in the cracks of the concrete he had bowed against. How he wished he could just slip through them as well.

Everyone ceased to move.

Just as the boy stopped, there was a bone-chilling laugh that rose above the deafening silence.

Then-

"I didn't say 'Simon says'."

A loud thwack followed.


	2. on par

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> /shrugs/

As JJ looked up warily, he was stunned to see the same guy who had come to beat him up out cold right next to him.

His head was bleeding and as JJ's gaze wandered, he realized the wound had been from the cracked bottle in Simon's hand.

Simon settled back on the stack of mattresses he had been sitting on, "Simon says, everyone should fuck off."

Some gang members rushed forth to drag the unconscious boy out of the room.

JJ was about to get the fuck out too.

"Not you," said Simon, stopping JJ in his tracks.

An unsettling urge to run welled up within JJ's chest and he felt like biting his own tongue off to escape his imminent peril.

Once it was just them, Simon began firing questions phrased as statements, which made it all the more nerve-wreaking for JJ.

"Class."

"A."

"Year."

"12."

"Name."

"JJ."

"You want my help."

"Yes."

"Be my bitch."

"Okay."

Simon' eyebrows quirked upwards at the answer, amused, but didn't stay on the subject matter.

"Walk and talk," Simon declared, discarding the bottle as he shoved the mattresses aside.

When JJ stayed still, Simon glares at him. In a small voice, he responded timidly, "you didn't say-"

"Cut the bullshit and carry my bag." Simon snapped, running a hand through his hair. Although that does throw JJ into an endless loop of confusion, he figured he should just do as he was told.

They discussed Deji's situation in clipped and curt sentences.

JJ wondered if Simon was easily annoyed, or just disliked talking.

They end up in the park deep in the neighborhood near midnight waiting for someone.

"Get me coffee," said Simon, slumping down onto a bench. JJ half-ran to the vending machine across from them, covered by foliage and mold.

Above all, it might've been too late to notice, but Simon must be a really messed up guy to make an entire school quiver before him, playing such a lame game.

When he returned, Simon was talking to someone on the bench, who appeared considerably smaller.

"And he just looked at me blankly and said 'okay', like what the fuck, mate? It was mad! You should've been there. It was fucking jokes." Simon laughed loudly, snatching the coffee from JJ and passing it to the other boy.

The boy was wearing a snap-back and possessed a rather amicable, non-threatening aura. JJ thought he was the last person he'd expect to be out at this hour, associating with gangsters. Whatever business Simon had with him, it seemed like it was the last thing on their minds.

For a while, they talked crudely about school. JJ stood by Simon awkwardly holding his bag.

From eavesdropping, JJ had gathered that the other boy was from a different school and much younger than the both of them. He also had a younger brother and sister whom Simon apparently knew quite well.

However, things took a sharp turn when Simon brought up Deji's incident. The weight of the situation caused the atmosphere to dip into a serious one.

"Look, we both have our own people to protect. You don't have to be a dick about it." He reasoned, tossing his empty drink aside.

Simon remained persistent, "I know this will ruffle many feathers," running a hand through his hair, "But in exchange, I could get you that thing you wanted since July."

A small smile tugged at the younger boy's lips.

Simon turned to JJ, barely looking at him, "fags."

JJ went through Simon's bag. Apart from the cigarettes, Simon only had mints and a charger in it.

There was a moment of silence as JJ handed Simon the cigarettes and he flicked the box open to offer the boy one. The action was smothered with such familiarity that just by spectating, JJ felt like he was imposing.

With the flickering of lighters in the dark park and billowing clouds of smoke emerging from parted lips, it hit JJ hard that he didn't exactly know what he'd gotten himself into.

"Thanks, it's been a rough week," chuckled the shorter boy.

They smoked in silence for a while, before the boy on the other side of the bench turned to JJ, "now, aren't you going to introduce me to your new plaything?"


	3. meet up

It had only been two days since he unofficially joined the gang, but Simon had got him outside every night.

Under the pretense that he was staying over at a friend's place, he found himself in the storage unit area a stone's throw away from the dock with Simon. Waiting for the ticket to clear Deji's name.

The closed blue shutter doors that filled rows feeling slightly more daunting under the moonlight.

Simon had sat down with his back to one of the shutter doors, legs stretched out in front of him, talking to one of his friends.

For some reason, the other gang members had tagged along and were fucking about, most of them similarly slumped against the pillars.

"So," began a short girl, catching JJ's attention, "what does Simon ask you to do for him?" JJ recognized her as the girl who usually stuck around Simon.

Her straight blonde hair framed her face and the jeans she'd got on successfully emphasizing her slim legs.

Jessica or Jess or something.

Shrugging, he launched into a monotonous listing of the odd jobs he had run. "Sounds like a real sidemen to me," she laughed, tossing her hair behind her shoulder.

Walking away after that statement, JJ openly stared at her retreating figure, astonished.

"Nice ass, don't you think?" mumbled Simon.

JJ whipped his head around to realize Simon was right next to him. He blurted, "Well I don't really talk to people to get insulted."

A raucous laugh escaped his lips and as it traveled to his eyes, JJ wondered how long that artificial snicker took to perfect.

Things quietened down when the suppliers arrived and Simon dragged JJ to the front lines to meet with him.

It was a small group of three people, all rather mature and roughened up, donning tattoos and dark clothing. Only Simon and JJ followed them down the storage units.

The clanking of boots against the floor only added to the ominous feeling that was escalating in JJ's chest.

Coming to a stop at the end of the row, one of the men unlocked the unit and hoisted it open, before disappearing into it.

The unit itself looked bare and the shelves that were against the walls were filled with briefcases and blurred in the shadows.

A man with black hair turned to Simon, nodding at JJ, "so you're his sideman?"

"Yeah, a new one," Simon replied, smirking, "what's new with the business?"

The man took no notice of his inquiry and mused, "oh, you suck his dick yet?"

JJ spluttered, "sorry, what?"

Simon shot him a glare that gave him the impression he shouldn't speak for the next decade or so.

The dark-haired man's friend threw them a shit-eating grin, "ah, young love."

Baffled and slightly offended, JJ glanced at Simon, who had already placed a cigarette between his fingers and looked utterly displeased, "Johnny, it stuns me how little time it takes for you to get on my nerves."

The man with black hair stepped forward and slung an arm around Simon's shoulders, ruffling his hair.

_What was going on?_

"What's a guy gotta do to get some quality time with his little brother?" he asked, as Simon ducked under the man's arm and proceeded to readjust his hair.

It smacks JJ in the face.

The man might've dyed his hair and got a couple of tattoos, but looking closer, they were strikingly similar. They bore the same intense blue eyes and broad physique.

Before Simon could begin with his slew of curses, the other man emerged from the unit with his package in a paper bag. Simon paid his brother swiftly and they were well on their way.

"Have fun with your boyfriend!" Johnny shouted after them.

With his cigarette wedged in between his fingers, Simon flipped him off.


	4. wind

Simon was a tornado of a mood that morning.

His feet were up on JJ's table and he had lit a cigarette in the classroom.

"You're costing me a lot of effort, you know that?" He said angrily, looking out the open window beside him.

JJ stood next to him, not really knowing what to do with himself.

All he had done was turn up for class and found Simon to be in his seat, lacking context.

When JJ failed to respond, Simon went on, "Tobi couldn't sort the thing with your brother out because the leaders are being dickheads and now, I've got to handle it."

"I mean, we," Simon corrected, tapping the ash of his cigarette on the floor with the edge of JJ's table.

Narrowed eyes and crossed arms, JJ asked, "so what are we going to do?"

Just then, JJ's teacher entered the classroom. She looked pointedly at Simon but held her silence.

The class stilled.

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe go fuck the queen and play video games after. What do you think?" Rolling his eyes, Simon extinguished his cigarette on JJ's table and threw it out the window.

He motioned for JJ to follow him. Smiling sheepishly at his teacher, JJ trailed after him.

"The egotistical bastard that framed your brother took a video of him when he raped that girl," Simon turned into the stairwell, "according to Tobi."

They didn't stop until they reached the roof.

He kicked the door open and JJ was greeted with an unfamiliar sight.

White tiles that had collected grime over the years flooded the entire floor, railings lining the perimeter caked with rust.

But the scene it overlooked, a calming landscape of a streets and low-rise buildings, it promoted an awe-inspiring sense of disconnection.

Vast grandeur might've been incredibly apropos to the describe the rooftop.

"We'll go there, beat him and his goons up and get the fucktard's phone," Simon said, back turned to him.

The merciless wind blowing their way might've been a factor, but just as the words left Simon's mouth, JJ's blood ran cold.


	5. morals

Swollen limbs. Bleeding knuckles. Black eyes.

That’s all JJ remembered from his last fight.

It had been rash and a product of blunt taunts, but he’d promised his parents he wouldn’t fight again.

He knew why it was frowned upon- to keep a low profile, so he wouldn’t catch the eye of any gangs. To get a grip on himself and develop a better temper.

But the main reason why JJ turned his back on fighting was because of his brother. The town was corrupt and overrun with crime, so growing up in it already wasn’t a breeze.

The last time JJ had picked a fight, his brother had got the brunt of it.

Above all, the last thing JJ wanted to do was have a repeat of that.

So when Simon commanded him to fight, JJ backed out immediately.

“Don’t be a twat,” Simon sighed, exasperated, “I know you’re a decent fighter.”

“It’s not that. I just don’t fight,” grunted JJ through gritted teeth.

He gets a kick to the gut for that.

Clutching his stomach, JJ tasted iron in his throat.

Simon's face is suddenly inches away from JJ's curled up body, "Simon says, fight."

Somehow, they’re piling into someone's car after school when Jesse stops Simon just as he’s climbing in. 

“What’s with you? Why’re you going through all this shit? This doesn’t concern you," the blonde girl who'd insulted him at the docks asked, eyeing JJ.

“Fuck off, Jesse. If you’ve got somewhere else to be a sket, go.” snarled Simon, before throwing himself into the passenger seat.

The engine revved.

JJ watched from the rearview mirror as the girl’s silhouette diminished with time. If JJ was honest with himself, he didn't feel bad for her. 

“You sure that was okay?” asked the driver. His tone wasn’t judgmental, but Simon still replied with the same agitated one, “She joined a gang, not a sorority, Josh. She’ll take the other car.”

The driver was one of Simon’s closer friends. Over the course of the past few days in which he had followed Simon around, they had met up many times. 

He wasn’t from their school and he was in the same gang as the boy from the park. Josh was one of the only people who could heckle Simon without being brutally beat up or murdered.

A bubble of indignance ruptured inside JJ's stomach. The thought of opening the car door and rolling out onto the road to living a peaceful life as a roadside beggar crossed his mind. 

Simon's gaze flickered to the rear view mirror as if picking up on JJ's internal plight. 

"You're not having doubts, are you?" He said flippantly, "cause if you're not going to fight, we're turning back."

Josh shook his head, muttering something incoherent.

Simon leaned back in his seat, ignoring him entirely.


	6. accost

JJ didn't want to know this fucker's name because it seemed that Simon was hell-bent on having him fight.

By maintaining anonymity, JJ figured it would make fighting easier. So, he was stuck with calling the guy ambiguous names in his head.

They'd stopped outside their local movie theater which was apparently this fucking guy's usual hangout. They lined the entire length of the entrance and were clearly a deterrence to any customers.

Perched on cars and making a fair bit of ruckus, JJ wasn't surprised when they get nasty looks from the staff from the inside.

An arm slid around JJ's shoulders, startling him. JJ found Simon's flippant presence alarming.

"Still having second thoughts?" He asked.

Yes.

JJ shook his head.

But Simon seemed to see through him because he continued, "well there shouldn't be any reason for you not to fight him, actually. When I talked to Tobi the other day, ya know what he told me?"

JJ didn't move, the shackled anger thrashing in the pit of his stomach. He folded his arms, fixing his gaze on the sliding glass doors.

"That fucker actually dared to say that he doesn't care who took his fall. I heard he took one glance at Deji and went, 'he's black and quiet. He'll fit the profile. No one will doubt he did it and he's too much of a pussy to say otherwise.' And the teachers legitimately think it's Deji."

The reckless, brash, idiocy clouds his brain; Simon's words all but fueling his rage. Just the concept of Deji's life being ruined by someone who didn't spare him a second thought.

And Simon said it.

The thing he knew would make him snap.

"Imagine that- your brother with the weight of that girl on his shoulders. For the rest of his life."

As if the universe was in on the sick joke, four people emerged from the building and JJ just cracked.

In years to come, when he recalled the memory he'd say he'd slipped into a state of delirium.

He could sense everything. The wind biting at his ear, the steps resounding as he stalked up to the group and the taste of revenge- sweet in his mouth.

Simon had shown him a picture of the palpitating cunt earlier, so the image had pretty much been burnt into his mind. And at that moment, finally seeing him in real life, more than ever, JJ had never felt more disgusted.

The first fist that flew wasn't met with the fuckwit's groin, though. There were others he had to take care of first.

He vaguely remembered knocking them out with skull-bashing and kicks of some sort.

But that was the limit of his concentration. Once he reached the ignorant twat, his body had numbed itself.

To sound, to pain, to the world.

For every punch he caught, he swung twice more.

He left everything to his instincts.

When he came to, it took a split second to realize the hideous gargoyle of a boy was on the ground, arm twisted around his back. The fuckwit's phone was retrieved and in Jesse's hands.

"Password," grunted JJ, leaning his foot in between his shoulder and arm, eliciting more agony. The shrieks of numbers pierced his ears.

He glanced at Jesse, who nodded in affirmation to attaining the video.

They had agreed to post it online and send it to the teachers.

There was a distinct echo of sirens in the air and JJ looked up at Simon. He hadn't moved.

In fact, nobody had.

JJ stood amidst three unconscious bodies and halfway on a wailing one.

The one and only alteration- the smile that had graced Simon's lips. It was small, private and genuine.

So candid that even when the pandemonium that reigned around JJ ensued- everyone throwing themselves into their cars and taking off, all he could focus on was how to make it stay.

And then he dislocated the wanker's arm. 

 


	7. sated

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> JJ attempts to weasel his way out.

"You snore bare loud for a seventeen-year-old.” The voice shocked JJ awake.

A menacing sharp pain shot through his head and he regretted his whole existence. Squinting through the dark, the only thing JJ could make out was that he was on a loveseat in the middle of a warehouse.

There was a dimly-lit corner that a short wire mesh wall separated filled with tables and stuffed with people.

Fireworks were going off outside coupled with cheers and shouts, but it was mostly muffled by the walls and closed glass windows for ceilings.

Briefly recalling he had resolved the situation with Deji, he let himself go a tad bit.

“Didn’t you hear? I’m seventeen going on seventy.” retorted JJ, rubbing his temples.

Simon settled into the couch adjacent to the one from his, resting his forearms on his knees, “do you remember anything? At all?”

The severe tone in which he spoke made JJ think. His manner of speech had been nothing but gruff, distasteful and raw for the past few days. This soothing tenderness with the lack of swearing felt too overtly well-meaning, something JJ didn’t think was feasible.

“I didn’t make out with Jesse, did I?” JJ gasped, feigning mortification.

Simon stared at him incredulously, slamming his palms into his lap, “unbelievable! You don’t remember pissing in the car too?”

The mangled look on JJ’s face ushered out a guffaw from Simon, “you’re too gullible, JJ.”

“Oh, fuck you,” JJ sighed sardonically. He slumped back on his back in the loveseat, legs dangling off the end.

The beams on the ceiling shone with the moonlight and fireworks, their undersides catching and releasing glints of illumination and the light flowed through the building seamlessly.

Proceeding to explain that after they’d clambered into the car, Jesse had helped JJ stop his bleeding and they kicked the cops off their trail. JJ had gotten woozy from losing a lot of blood, but all they had was vodka. They’d gotten him water along the way, but Josh had suggested he use it to ease the pain.

In his haze of bleary consciousness, JJ had taken him seriously and downed half the bottle- eventually passing out.

Simon carried an amused expression, “You know, when you were drunk off your ass, you revealed that you didn’t know what our gang name or colour was…what? Why are you looking at me like that?”

Suddenly becoming hyper-conscious of himself, JJ collected his emotions.

“This is the first time you’ve talked so much at once.”

“Well, if you’re going to be one of us, we shouldn’t be on a ‘business only’ mode,” Simon replied smoothly.

A frantic feeling sky-rocketed JJ’s uneasiness into a panic.

“Aren’t I done with this? That’s what you said- I’d be your bitch and you’d help me. Now that you’ve helped me, I’m not your bitch!”

“You really want to leave the gang after you’ve made enemies?”

“Are we having a bitch fight now?” came a voice, startling JJ. He hadn’t noticed Josh meander over. The dark-haired boy smiled cheerfully, oblivious to the ambience. With a drink in his hand, he lowered himself carefully into the seat next to Simon’s.

Simon didn’t acknowledge him and persisted on the issue, “don’t think that gangs are all nice and friendly like we are with theirs,” he gestured toward Josh, who maintained his neutral exterior. “Especially after you’ve humiliated their leader. Once you're on your own, you’re as good as dead.”

Soothing the mood, Josh added light-heartedly, “don’t listen to him, JJ. He just needs a bodyguard. Leave them. Someone as good a fighter as you will do better in our gang.”

The furrows in Simon’s eyebrows unwound and he exchanged a chuckle with Josh.

Despite the atmosphere alleviating, JJ couldn’t help but feel relatively bothered.

He couldn’t quite put a finger on it, but it was the way Simon had handled the circumstances, even from before.

It irked him- maybe it was how Simon carried himself as well, why people flocked to him. Hell, it was just a defining quality…but what was it?

JJ derailed his current train of thought for one he had had moments ago.

“Oh, by the way, where are we?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There will only be a couple more updates because I'm starting school soon, but I hope you've enjoyed the story thus far!


	8. tilt

Days flew by.  
  
Blissful, serene, tranquil silence filled his room.  
  
Something JJ appreciated greatly at the moment.  
  
With his membership in question, JJ honestly wasn’t sure what he wanted.  
  
After they drove back from the warehouse that doubled as a gang headquarters, Simon dropped him off at his house with a simple “think about it.”  
  
“That’s what they call it- a _headquarters_ , but Simon’s just freeloading off Johnny and Nick.” Josh had laughed, his eyes fixed on the road, hands casually slipping off the steering wheel to adjust his hair.  
  
Shrugging, Simon continued, “Yeah, but it’s still better than the back of a pub.”  
  
“I’m just going to assume Nick is your brother too?” JJ asked- after meeting the gang officially, which measured up to about 40 people, names and faces were all blurring together.  
  
Simon looked at him like he had just said he didn’t know what grime music was.  
  
Jesse caught him up to speed.  
  
He was left to fend for himself against his mother, who had no idea where he had been all night. Coming home with bandages and ragged clothes did not do him any favours. JJ felt he was already dead with or without the gang.  
  
However, he was oddly fulfilled. Bending his morals, indulging in reckless things, he didn’t think he’d do them ever since...  
  
Turning in his bed, JJ knew he should quit the gang. Deji’s name was cleared. Of course, that was oversimplified, but it was muddled with layers JJ couldn’t bring himself to care about.  
  
As far as leaving a gang was going to be hard, he wasn’t keen on having it drag his future down. There was one thing that was reeling him in, though.  
  
Got him second-guessing himself and addicted to the concept of being a gangster.  
  
It was absolutely ludicrous for him to consider giving in to the temptation- no, giving into Simon- and yet, there he was.

Lying in bed.

Mulling it over.

* * *

  
He realized he didn’t quite get the full package of the ‘thrill of being a gangster’ the next morning, but then again, no one really mentioned the complimentary serving of teacher-tripping-on-acid-pointing-a-gun-at-you that he evidently did not get an option to pass on.  
  
He just wanted to take a piss.  
  
JJ had sauntered in, with the entire world at his feet. The morning had been excellent too, as he had eavesdropped on the conversations that were related the video he’d helped circulate.  
  
The response was overwhelmingly critical of the asshole whose arm he'd dislocated, as it should.  
  
Relieving himself, he turned to wash his hands, only to walk straight into a teacher.  
  
“Oh, I’m sorry, s-” JJ began.  
  
“Shut up, you bitch!” the teacher, JJ recognized as Mr. Ted, shouted, but abruptly broke off into a sob, “I never do anything good enough for the students.” He crumbled to the floor, holding his knees to his chest and started rocking back and forth.  
  
Tears streamed down his face, the emotion collapsing it into a blob of unpleasant, flattened features that drew out a considerable amount of discomfort.  
  
The wailing erupted throughout the toilet and JJ couldn’t say he’d been more disturbed.  
  
There was a resounding click and suddenly, there was a gun pointed right at JJ.  
  
Sobbing. Wretched, heart-breaking bawling. Mr. Ted had a manic look in his dilated pupils that were giving out a stream of tears and had mucus trailing down his chin. “Don’t leave, Simon. Not again,” he choked hoarsely.  
  
He could feel his heart in his stomach, the benign breeze transforming into a chill and his muscles locking up.  
  
In a split second, JJ's instincts kicked in. Quite literally.  
  
Mr. Ted’s face caught the heel of JJ’s shoe just as the teacher pulled the trigger, sending him to the ground and slamming his head so hard on it that there was an audible _crack_.  
  
When the bullet ricocheted off the walls, grazing his neck, he barely felt a thing.  
  
JJ stood before the vessel of a man, panting.  
  
The door burst open.  
  
Jumping out of his skin, JJ allowed his mind to run wild, trying to draw links between the teacher and the boy he was slightly relieved to see.  
  
“Fuck, I missed everything,” Simon grumbled.  
  
Nonchalantly giving Mr. Ted a quick assessment and paying no mind to JJ's penetrating stare, he flipped the teacher’s body upright with his foot.  
  
JJ removed the gun from his hand, visibly trembling.  
  
Placing a reassuring hand on JJ’s shoulder and taking the gun with the other, Simon inspected it, his fingers running down its body, swift and steady.  
  
“Thought so. This is ours. Good work, even though it was accidental, but still.” Simon pulled his right leg’s trouser up, revealing the presence of an empty holster.  
  
Faint voices traveled from the outside and Simon shoved the gun in quickly, closing his hand around JJ’s wrist, dragging him to the last cubicle.  
  
He crouched down to adjust his trousers, “in.”  
  
JJ was coming down from his adrenaline high and was utterly baffled, “sorry, what?”  
  
“Simon says get your fucking ass in!” he said boisterously, not sparing JJ a glance.  
  
With that, Simon shoved him into the grimy space, pausing to slap an "under maintenance" sign on the door.  
  
Footsteps that gradually got louder allowed JJ's mind to catch up- understanding how rough it would look to see a teacher bleeding, passed out on the floor with an unharmed student standing before him.  
  
Simon climbed onto the seat and signaled for JJ to join him. If there was ever a spectrum of beckoning, Simon's at that moment would be- "hurry the fuck up, or your dick won't be the only body part that'll be sliced off."


	9. curdle

Everything was flooding his mind.

The realisation that he didn't really know Simon at all, the sheen of perspiration on his neck that JJ wanted to run his tongue over.

Figuratively, of course.

Okay, maybe not  _ so _ figuratively.

But Simon adjusted himself on JJ's lap and he was called back to reality.

The bare fact that Simon pressed up against him.

To be fair, JJ had been prepared to expect the unexpected- but this, being inches away from his own personal embodiment of temptation, close enough to indulge in had been the least plausible.

Overwhelmed would have been an understatement.

They'd scrambled into the cubicle mere moments earlier to escape the imminent footsteps that had formed into new presences in the bathroom.

Quarrelling brashly, their hostile voices bounced off the walls.

"We should get another teacher," said one.

Another slammed his suggestion into the tiles- "and tell them what? We found a teacher lying on the ground? Like fuck, they're going to believe us."

"Okay, so should we just drop an anonymous message to the teachers?" a timid voice asked, compromising.

The door creaked open and the second speaker uttered, "do whatever you want."

With a soft groan, the two remaining boys followed suit, the door clanging to a close behind them.   
  


* * *

 

She pressed a gentle, cooling piece of cotton to his neck and pressed his mind back together.

Tending to his wound- the bullet having nipped a fair bit of flesh off his neck- Jesse explained what had happened.

They were hiding in an unoccupied classroom, JJ on a seat and Jesse sitting on the desk before him, leaning over to clean him up, her legs braced on either side of his chair.

Simon was on his phone in the corner.

"Simon's father used to own an enormous weapon manufacturing company in our area. He sold all types of items capable of assault. They became popular because they were cheap and weren't stopped because there was simply too much for the police to handle."

She paused and leant back to apply more medication on the gauze.

"Despite that, some guns were still stolen from the warehouse. When Simon's in the mood, he gets off his lazy ass and helps retrieve them. There's a chip in every one of them, so he can pull a location on them anytime."

As she finished speaking, Jesse pressed a firm hand on JJ's neck, to ensure the adhesive was strong enough. The action seemed neutral and innocent enough, but as she had to bend over for him to be in her reach, JJ could see down her shirt.

Now it wasn't that Jesse wasn't fucking hot, or stunning, or possibly out of every porn magazine, but as his eyes grazed the sight, he found himself averting his eyes, barely fazed.

Her dainty skin would put a baby’s ass to shame, glazed with the essence of incomparable fervour and whispered sweet scents of desire into the still air. 

It could possibly make the devil repent, or maybe even Simon.

JJ knew she didn’t have any hidden agendas either- there was a charismatic manner in which Jesse showed it off effortlessly.

Yet, JJ felt nothing.

The existing lure of physical lust was simply insignificant.

"So what happened to the company? Is his dad still running it?" JJ asked absent-mindedly, as he helped Jesse tear open the packaging of the bandages he needed.

Jesse shook her head no and began to dress JJ's wound.

With the lack of elaboration, it only piqued his interest, so JJ pressed, "Did it close down? Too many products stolen?"

For a slight moment, Jesse seemed doubtful in her actions. Tentatively, she parted her lips, but closed them again, regaining her steadfast persona.

It's only when they're walking out of school an hour later and jumping the fence that she brought it up again.

Simon ambled ahead of them, already having scaled and left the school premises.

"Ever heard of Rogue boys Incorporated?"

JJ slips on the railing and almost stabs himself in the crotch with the metal spikes lining the gate. 

Calming himself down, he settles on straddling the gate, watching, absolutely humiliated, as Jesse laughed at his close-shave of a mishap.

Rogue boys Incorporated was a worldwide business specialising in firearms. More specifically- black market firearms. They traded with illegal labour, supported by illicit drug syndicates and unlawful brothels. 

Point was, anything related to the company was undoubtedly illegal.

Although, JJ didn't know this just because he lived in a shitty neighbourhood. He knew this because they were constantly on the news.

Time and again they'd be convicted of a crime, pinned for smaller, petty violations of the law, like big gangs usually were and predictably, it wouldn't take long before the news would show that they had been allowed to walk off without a scratch.

"From your expression, I think you do," Jesse sighed.

JJ continued his attempt on the gate, swinging his leg over to slot them into footing that'd give him support. 

"Why? Simon's dad owns it?"

Jesse huffed as she touched the ground,

"And every business it has."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> guess who's back (not JJ's logic) (back again)


	10. redolent

“ _ Aren’t you happy to see me? _ ”

The smug man had said, before adeptly straddling JJ and kissing him senseless. 

The demand of what was going on swiped off his tongue. 

There had been a breach of personal space, logic and sexuality, but frankly, JJ couldn’t say he wasn’t enjoying himself. 

A deep groan rumbled from the back of JJ’s throat, as the man rocked him into the couch. 

It's material felt oddly familiar, despite JJ being absolutely certain he was not home or-

Huh. 

The couch at the headquarters felt exactly like that.

His lips were preoccupied, hands naturally groping whoever and at whatever, but JJ had no recollection of associating himself with the gang for days.

After that day when they’d snuck out of school, they went to the dock and met up with the some of the gang, mostly talking shit and playing around until alcohol arrived, which he refused and didn't go without much teasing. 

They had gone around sneaking into theatres and wreaking havoc until they had been asked to leave from every single one. 

JJ mostly stood by observing, though. The after school festivities were slightly too much for him, given he’d just had poor experiences with wounds and alcohol. 

Besides, someone had to watch out for Simon.

He was quick to learn that Simon was terribly flirtatious when wasted and did not hold back on making sure that every stranger knew that they were ridiculously attractive. 

And while going home to a half-awake furious mother (again) wasn't ideal, JJ wouldn’t have traded witnessing Simon puking over one of his endeavours before kissing them so passionately Josh had to get Tobi to help pull him off for the world. 

That was the last he’d seen them.

So one could fathom his disorientation when JJ awoke to a mysterious location and the possibility of sex. 

A blanket of moonlight danced across the dull lit area and the couch felt minuscule, relative to the smooth cement floors that stretched out far beyond it. 

Kind of like what he'd woken up to in the warehouse. 

That was slotted into a drawer of irrelevance, though, as the stranger lifted his shirt over his head, revealing captivating pale skin complemented with a toned body. 

Train of thought sinking into the void in his head, he gave into the pleasure elicited as the man nuzzled into JJ’s neck, teeth playfully nipping at exposed skin. 

He could feel the heat building up with the friction, the hands splayed across his waist, feeling the smile as the man's lips pressed down to his own. 

Eventually, the man pulled back, a hand cupping JJ’s face and the other on his bare chest. It was only then he got a look at him. 

With the lack of light, JJ could only decipher that the man had light coloured hair. Blond, maybe brown? 

His eyes, too. They were piercing and abrupt. 

The stranger possessed a lanky physique and a creamy, mellow voice. 

Although what stood out about the man though, was the ever-present smile, like there was something phenomenal about being with him. 

And JJ somehow how, deep down, felt like he knew who the man was, intimately. That what they were doing was a common occurrence. And that frightened him. 

“ _ Why're you so quiet today? Something wrong? _ ”

A furrow had come between the smile. 

Logic too had slid into the crevices of the gaps in his mind. 

He felt like he knew that smile- no, he knew that smile. 

It was superficial. 

The man’s hands were pried off JJ’s face as he shook his head, his gaze torn apart and frantic.

“ _ What's wrong? _ ” 

Ignoring the question, JJ asked,

“Who...who are you?” 

A light-hearted laugh escaped the man’s lips, “ _ Jesus, what are you on? _ ”

But JJ barely regarded this as a laughing matter, instead, he demanded, “Tell me!” 

It was only then that he noticed a pack of cigarettes on the arm of the couch and jerked his head back, alarmed to meet the man, who was smiling coyly. 

“ _ You didn't say ‘Simon Says’. _ ”

# 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wot


	11. fluster

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sometimes, things that are supposed to be fun...are worse

Waking up to Simon’s face next to his was a next level of creepy.  
  
It was as if the universe had aligned the situation in a grand and poised way of saying 'fuck you'.  
  
After jolting upright and screaming his head off, he pushed the window next to his bed upward to a roaring Simon, “I should’ve recorded that! Your face was priceless!”  
  
There were two things he noticed when he opened the window.  
  
First, half the gang was parked outside his house, blasting music in the dead of the night.  
  
Second, JJ was half-hard.  
  
“Not gonna invite me in? Bit rude, init?” Simon asked, already half way into his room.  
  
There was a slight scramble for JJ to grab his pants hanging off of the bed frame- “what are you doing here?”, all the while making a point to keep himself under the duvet, “you’re going to wake the entire town up!”  
  
“We’re going to a party tonight,” Simon exclaimed, looking straight at JJ, unflinching and sure. He was sat on JJ’s bed, cross legged, almost like he belonged there.

Now if JJ thought the dream wasn't enough, there was a sudden influx of inappropriate thoughts.

Mostly revolving around him pushing Simon onto the bed. He had to allow himself a brief moment to collect his thoughts- or what was left of it, anyway.

  
Maybe it was just his boner talking, but admiring Simon came easily to JJ- the soft blond hair that was begging to be messed up, the brilliant piercing blue eyes and the parted lips JJ just wanted to _take_.

  
God, was JJ melting under his intense gaze.  
  
When Simon was met with a spluttering refusal, he insisted, “Come on! Just as mates.” Simon pat the duvet and JJ jolted upright.  
  
His hand kept landing on the same spot as he rambled on, “I know you still haven’t decided whether you want to join the gang, but everyone wanted you to go and-”

“Simon.”

"They've been annoying as fuck. You will not believe how many times you're popping up in conversation. I swear to God-"

"Simon!”

"Even Jesse! Can you believe it? She _despised_ you. Now all she's going on about is JJ this, JJ tha-"

"SIMON!"

“What?”

“That’s… not my knee.”  
  
Simon was still laughing when they got into the car.  
  
Josh raised his eyebrows, expectant for an explanation of the giggling boy in the passenger seat.  
  
“Mad! You only took 14 minutes to come!” Tobi said as JJ joined them in the back, gathering hoots and wolf whistles for the double entendre.  
  
JJ exchanged his salutations with the people in the car, names surfacing on his tongue with surprising familiarity.  
  
“Jesus, Tobi. You don’t have to be such a _dick_ ,” JJ quipped, deadpan.  
  
That made Simon laugh even harder.  
  
When he caught JJ’s gaze in the mirror, eyes crinkled and brimming with benign spirit, JJ would be lying if he said he didn’t revel in the beauty of the man. It was just something about the night that made him all the more attractive.  
  
“Damn, we turn around for a minute and you guys are off eloping,” teased Jesse.  
  
The car jerked forward and JJ almost smashed his head on the driver’s seat. A collection of groans erupted among them, Josh showing no signs of being apologetic.

“I guess the father disapproves,” Tobi said.  
  
“What?” JJ and Josh asked in unison.  
  
“Don’t think I don’t hear what your girl calls you just because I’m a house away,” said Tobi flatly.  
  
Flushed, Josh fixates his eyes on the road, muttering, “at least I have a girlfriend.”  
  
The music echoed after them, with their windows down and gusts of wind whipping at their faces; the concern of waking the neighbours up might as well have gone with it.  
  
Simon pulled out a cigarette.

* * *

 

JJ’s been to parties before.  
  
The kind loaded with awkward dancing, shitty alcohol and no girls.  
  
But this.  
  
This looked like a proper ball, with posh marble floors accompanied with fancy chandeliers.  
Not to mention, they did travel a fair bit to get there, which meant they’d left the shittier neighbourhoods.  
  
The house stood mighty and dignified, bursting with lively commotion and music shaking its foundation. “This doesn’t look like the parties you go to,” JJ half-shouts at Simon, as the noise threatened to drown him out.   
  
They’re walking at the end of the group and as they entered, passing half-naked people and grabby hands, it dawned on JJ one of these kids were probably significantly better-off than all of them combined.  
  
“That’s because it isn’t,” Simon replied, dodging a flying drink, squeezing through more dancing people and grabbing himself one at the bar, “we’re crashing this bitch!”  
  
The bass line of the song playing drowned him out.  
  
Honestly, JJ didn’t know what to think. There was too much to happening for him to process.

Then again, he didn't want to.  
  
Regardless, he played along- got dragged around with Simon checking out the enormous house, lost most of their friends along the way, danced on the front lawn with most of the party, cannonballing into the pool.  
  
Or- Simon did- JJ just held his clothes.  
The longer they stayed, the more apparent it became to JJ that everyone was too wasted to care, which was a bit of a relief.

Just as he was settling into his skin, a voice made him feel his heart rip through his shirt.

  
“Are you here alone?”

They had been in the more obscure part of the house, where Simon had been trying to dry off.  
  
Whipping around, JJ visibly retracted from the girl talking to Simon, hoping he’d be passed off as a meagre stranger.  
  
Blonde hair, blue eyes and that distinct accent- JJ really wished he could forget her.  
  
Simon was a mess at this point, slurring his words and shivering from the pool, despite wearing a stolen robe from a random room, “no, I’m here with my sideman.”  
  
“Ooh,” she cooed, ruffling his wet hair, narrowing her eyes and smiling slyly.

The entirety of her attention was on him at that point, “didn’t think I would see you here, Jide.”  
  
The hooks in her tone caught on his memories and JJ had to gulp to steady himself.

“Right back at you, Seana.”


	12. you miss a lot when you fall asleep

Simon had really wanted to sleep, but he was cold and JJ wouldn't cuddle with him. Simon was about to order him to do so when a blonde girl approached him.

She donned a bright pink bathing suit under a similarly coloured robe. The untroubled smile she had plastered across her face gave rise to a feeling quite the opposite.

"Are you here alone?" she had asked, the condescending tone going very well with each sashay. Simon felt like a child about to puke after meeting his father's new girlfriend for the first time.

Although, in his clouded consciousness and exhaustion, Simon couldn't give fewer fucks.

There was suddenly a hand tousling his hair, which caught him off guard. "No, I'm here with my sideman," he slurred, deciding not to read too much into it.

Overcome with fatigue, Simon passed out.

***

JJ heard the snoring before the thump of Simon's head against the wall next to him.

Brushing past Seana, JJ leaned Simon on a pillar for support.

"So you do have a type," she muttered from behind him.

Despite being crouched down, JJ had heard it all. It stirred a strong sense of indignation within him, "what do you mean?" He said over his shoulder, but when he turned around, she was gone.

***

JJ stared at Seana's retreating form and let the overbearing bass latch onto his consciousness instead.

The party prevailed through the early morning. Some of their friends had located them and paused their shenanigans to take the piss at Simon's sleeping form.

JJ was slumped against the glass panel across from him.

Having seen multiple people fall victim to penises on their foreheads after losing consciousness, JJ thought it'd be better if he stayed with the blond.

And much like everyone that encountered him, JJ was captivated by Simon.

The annoyingly enchanting boy consumed every space in his mind, knocked the disturbingly intimate dream out of his mind. The gnawing worry of the monstrosity he had to face when he got home had also been dismissed.

Everything about him was just appealing. Pursed, slick lips. Dark eyelashes that contrasted harshly against the tantalizing pale skin. The snoring that escaped slightly parted lips was cute too. Lean arms were dipped down into his lap, crossed and tucked under either thigh.

They made JJ think too much and yet want to think of nothing at all. The thought of having Simon to himself encompassed his chest in a tight embrace and squeezed it so tight until all he could breathe was his own infatuation.

A relaxed expression engulfed his features. It wasn't the common 'fuck it all' one he wore on a daily basis, but it was truly one that allowed his vulnerability to shine through.

JJ knew he wouldn't get tired of looking at Simon and JJ didn't want to look away.

So he didn't.

***

When JJ broke his stare to Josh hollering for him, he'd glanced at his phone; and more time than he'd liked to admit had passed.

***

Hoisting him up, JJ caught a couple of camera flashes his way. He glared, to which the aggressors responded by ducking away sheepishly.

"Oh my," Jesse remarked, pleasantly amused as her eyes flickered upwards from her phone, seeing the pair amble across from the house.

Abashed and irritated, JJ increased his pace. Carrying Simon bridal style was not his first choice.

He'd tried a piggy-back but Simon had been barely awake enough to hold on. The fireman's carry had him swearing down the stairs and breaking furniture left and right. So, bridal style it was.

Everyone else looked too spent to add on, which JJ was eternally grateful for.

Everyone but Jesse and JJ was out cold on the drive back, lulled to sleep by music turned to the lowest setting on the radio. He felt like a kindergarten teacher bringing his class back after a long field trip, which given the state of the messes they had made on their shirts (except Tobi, at this point he didn't have one on) was pretty accurate.

Catching JJ staring at Simon in the rearview mirror, Jesse giggled, "Simon's really something else, isn't he?"

She was met with a bewildered face.

Smugly, she went on, "that's what you're thinking, right?"

JJ maintained his poise, treading lightly, but Jesse beat him to a response, this time sounding incredibly serious, "be careful JJ".

"I'm sorry, what?" he spluttered, looking determinedly out the window.

She sighed and her eyes stared at the dark streets before them.

"Just, be careful, okay?"

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, this is my first sidemen fic on ao3.  
> Hope you liked it!
> 
> Also, please leave feedback so I can improve.
> 
> Prefer wattpad? 
> 
> [Read it here]  
> https://www.wattpad.com/story/105807136-ksimon-disclose  
> [Profile]  
> https://www.wattpad.com/user/aoiyay


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